Schertler RESOCOIL Internal Pickup for Mandolin

Pros: very natural sound, balanced output, feedback resistant

Cons: price, stupid blue end pin (should be gold plated)

I've bought two of these over the years, one for a mandolin and another for a ukulele. Although expensive, this is by far the most natural sounding pickup I've come across. It produces a nice, woody, acoustic sound - very similar to a high quality external microphone - and is extremely feedback resistant. Output is slightly on the low side (not a big deal but often the sound guys ask me if I can turn it up - no, they need to adjust their preamp trim a little). Although external versions of this pickup are available (and more plentiful) that allow you to move the pickup amongst all your instruments (and therefore a more cost effective way to use this outstanding pickup, perhaps), I chose to equipment each of my instruments with their own internal pickup, attached to the sound board inside, to maintain their unfettered acoustic appearance. Plus, I often change instruments from one song to the next and having to move the pickup between the instruments would take much too long. Mass is very small, so it has very little effect on the acoustic properties of the soundboard. If you have a high-quality instrument, it doesn't make sense to outfit it with a mediocre pickup. Presummably the better instruments have better sound. Shouldn't you want to maintain that sound for others to hear, even in an amplified situation? This pickup will accurately maintain the nuances of your instrument. You get what you pay for.

Submitted by: fretman on 04/24/2011 04:02:02 PM